But Taesu was a little different.
"Hmm?"
A glint.
In that instant, an unusual light flickered across his eyes.
The words he had just heard were the hint.
Taesu, who had been rapidly darting his eyes about, immediately glanced to the side.
Jeong Minsu's eyes had become bloodshot before anyone knew it.
"Ahem. Sniff. Ahem ahem."
He sniffled his nose and even forced out dry coughs.
It was clear he had immersed himself in Shan Meheum's emotions before he knew it.
Taesu gave an awkward smile at the sight of him sniffling so much that his large frame seemed ill-suited for it.
'That's so like you.'
But this was no time to stare blankly.
Tap.
Taesu nudged him lightly with his elbow.
Jeong Minsu flinched and looked at him questioningly, whispering very quietly.
"Why?"
"......."
Whoosh.
Without a word, Taesu jerked his chin toward the temporary ward door.
Jeong Minsu's expression immediately turned fierce upon seeing that.
"Are you telling me to get out?"
"Tsk. Bread."
Taesu gave up on him and looked for Bread Gim, who stood behind.
And sent the exact same signal he had given Jeong Minsu.
Fortunately, Bread Gim was much quicker on the uptake than Jeong Minsu.
"Okay."
He understood immediately and quietly moved toward the door.
Only then did Jeong Minsu react with a face that showed he'd only just realized.
"Ah, ah."
"Shh."
"Uh, then me too...."
Softly.
Jeong Minsu quietly followed behind Bread Gim.
Just then, Gim Hyeokgwon's interpretation continued to be heard.
"They say she cried and screamed her heart out."
"I imagine so."
Swish.
Taesu replied and subtly shifted his body.
It was nothing significant.
But Gim Hyeokgwon caught even that slight movement of Taesu's.
Then, having seen something, his eyebrows twitched.
"Hmm."
A low exclamation of admiration was heard as well.
That wasn't all.
Swish.
He subtly turned his body to draw Shan Meheum's gaze.
Taesu inwardly admired him considerably.
'The art of reading the room.'
Thanks to that, the hastily devised plan would proceed more smoothly.
And that prediction was accurate.
Rustle.
Movements suppressing their sounds were detected behind Taesu's back.
Meanwhile, Shan Meheum continued speaking with teary eyes.
"@%#$%$."
"She was so scared because no matter how much she screamed, there was no answer."
Gim Hyeokgwon interpreted without showing any sign of it.
Taesu deliberately raised his voice slightly and asked.
"So what did she do?"
"@#$%...... She says she felt a hand grabbing hers after a long while."
"A feeling of someone holding her hand...... Is there more?"
"^#$%$...... She felt something strange in her legs and body, and she stopped falling."
Listening to Gim Hyeokgwon's interpretation, Taesu looked at Shan Meheum.
Her gaze was deep and complex, unlike that of a child.
Perhaps she vaguely guessed that the feeling had saved her life at the time.
Her expression as she looked at the ceiling was far too heavy.
But then.
Swish.
A hand appeared from the opposite side and carefully wrapped around Shan Meheum's.
It wasn't a single touch.
Hands appearing from here and there soothed Shan Meheum.
Taesu smiled broadly upon seeing that and asked.
"Do you perhaps feel that sensation even now?"
"@^#$%...... She says that perhaps because she's speaking of it, she seems to feel it again."
"Shan Meheum."
Taesu suddenly called her name, so unexpectedly.
And slowly stepped back.
Meanwhile, Shan Meheum, who had been looking at the ceiling at the sound of her name, lowered only her eyes.
"Gasp."
Shan Meheum was greatly shaken by what she saw.
And soon her two eyes brimmed with tears.
What Shan Meheum saw was her family surrounding her bed.
They were all holding her with both hands.
They expressed their joy at reuniting with smiles and tears instead of words.
It was then.
Shan Meheum paused and searched for someone.
"Sis...ter."
That person was her older sister.
Her older sister was holding Shan Meheum's hand.
Just by looking at her trembling fingertips, her heart was conveyed wholly.
However.
She was forcing back tears and struggling to draw a smile.
She brought that hand to her own cheek, closed her eyes, and murmured.
"Dear God, thank you for granting our family's wish to see, hear, and touch my younger sibling Shan Meheum just once more."
Shan Meheum froze upon hearing that prayer.
It was but an instant.
Tears that had welled up increasingly began falling drop by drop, beyond her control.
Taesu watched that sight and retreated further back.
Tap.
Where Taesu stood, Gim Hyeokgwon, Jeong Minsu, and Bread Gim were standing.
But it wasn't just them.
Yun Juseong, Jo Uncheol, Chu Gangik, I Chorong, Hwang Jisu.
Everyone who had participated in the surgery had arrived.
And Jose and Yupi were visible too.
Because these two were there, they had been able to guide the family quietly into the ward.
They were watching the moment Shan Meheum and her family reunited together.
Someone smiled.
And someone else dabbed tears with their sleeve.
Their hearts were warm.
They must have each faced such situations many times.
Nevertheless, it shook their hearts deeply.
At this, Nurse Chu Gangik clutched his chest heavily and let out a deep exclamation.
"Grrr. This tingling, prickling feeling in my chest. This is exactly what it's all about."
"Truly, every time this happens, I'm proud of my choice."
"It was hard work...... Yes. It was hard work, right. But if it's for such a memorable scene, I can endure as much hardship as it takes."
Everyone voiced the sentiments they were feeling right now.
They were words that spilled out unconsciously.
An hour later.
Creak.
The temporary ward door opened and Taesu and the medical staff came out.
Jo Uncheol saw them off.
"Everyone, rest well."
"Will you be okay?"
When Taesu asked, Jo Uncheol spoke.
"Right now, I'll respond the fastest if I'm here."
"The number of patients suddenly increased so much."
"I'm Jo Uncheol. Don't worry."
Swish.
Taesu looked into the temporary ward over Jo Uncheol's shoulder.
Three more hospital beds had been added, making a total of four.
Shan Meheum's family members were lying in the other beds.
It was because their tension had released, and the pain they had forgotten until now came rushing in.
Shan Meheum's mother was the prime example.
Taesu took her in his sights and added a quiet word.
"And autoimmune dieases patients are difficult to care for."
"It's the early stage. Rashes are appearing, or it's at the level of lethargy."
"Well, that's true."
Taesu immediately agreed with that part.
Still, he couldn't easily erase his worries.
Jo Uncheol, seeing that worry, added.
"I prescribed diluted corticosteroid medication, and she's already getting better."
"Yes."
"It's not lupus, and there are no signs of Cushing's syndrome at all."
Jo Uncheol mentioned even the representative names of autoimmune diseases, adding certainty.
One wouldn't know well if not a doctor, but in fact, the pain management scope of the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine was quite broad.
It wasn't limited to only acute and chronic pain.
They also handled non-painful conditions like allergic rhinitis and facial spasms.
Jo Uncheol was quite knowledgeable in that field.
On the other hand, he sometimes showed a relatively weak side in dealing with bleeding.
Taesu knew his strengths and weaknesses all too well, so he said no more.
"I understand. I'll stop worrying."
"I told you to rest easy."
"Yes. I'll rest easy and do my job."
"Of course you should. Everyone else, don't get any strange ideas and rest well too. See you."
Thud.
Jo Uncheol closed the temporary ward door and pushed them all out.
Timing it right, Bread Gim led everyone away.
"Let's go."
"Yes. I want to fill my stomach first."
"You've all worked hard until the end today as well."
With proud faces, exchanging encouragement, everyone moved.
Taesu smiled and moved along with them.
They were soon leaving the school and heading to the restaurant.
Taesu's gaze turned toward the hospital.
"......."
He moved with the group while keeping his eyes on the hospital like that.
Late at night.
A certain ward door opened quietly.
Creak.
Through that gap, Taesu entered the ward.
Lee Changgyu was lying in the bed by the wall.
And Gang Yeonghun, seated in front of the bed, was visible too.
Taesu headed that way and looked at the ECG.
Beep beep. Beep beep.
The sound of the ECG was no different from daytime.
Taesu approached near the bed, put his hand in his gown pocket, and formed a bitter smile.
"It seems he hasn't woken up yet."
"Mph? Ah, Dr. Choe."
"I'm just here to visit."
Taesu said, sitting in the seat beside him.
Gang Yeonghun also spoke with a bitter face, not reacting sensitively.
"Doctor Schmidt said it seems more time is needed."
"I see."
"Yes. That's right."
Gang Yeonghun repeated himself and closed his mouth.
Seeing his firmly clamped lips, Taesu felt that he had steeled himself for something alone.
Taesu formed a bitter smile and advised.
"There's no need to be tense."
"......."
"You snap at everything anyone says to you; I don't think that's a very good habit."
Taesu openly questioned him about what had been an internal dissatisfaction.
And Gang Yeonghun?
"......."
He remained silent nonetheless.
Taesu, seeming to have no intention of pressing further, looked at Lee Changgyu and spoke.
"Today, a child who was injured similarly to Changgyu woke up."
"That's something to celebrate."
"Yes. I was quite happy too."
"But did Changgyu come to mind?"
Gang Yeonghun unexpectedly asked.
Taesu smiled broadly and answered.
"No. He didn't come to mind in that moment."
"Then?"
"When I came outside and saw the hospital, only then did Changgyu come to mind."
At Taesu's honest answer, Gang Yeonghun made a bitter expression.
"So that's why you've come."
"There's that reason too, and I also remembered something that felt a little unfulfilled."
"An unfulfilled part?"
"The child named Shan Meheum talked at length about what she went through."
Taesu spoke calmly.
Gang Yeonghun, unable to immediately grasp what the subject was, glanced at him sidelong.
"Hmm."
"But hearing it through Mr. Hyeokgwon, the feeling was somewhat subtle."
"What do you mean?"
"Perhaps because I was hearing it filtered through an interpreter once, I ended up listening with detachment."
Taesu looked at Lee Changgyu and spoke softly.
Meanwhile, Gang Yeonghun, who was looking at Taesu, seemed to roughly guess the meaning.
"You mean it would have been better if you had heard it without going through an interpreter."
"The pain, joy, and sorrow the patient feels—you'd be able to grasp them clearly, wouldn't you?"
"I understand."
Gang Yeonghun subtly tried to wrap up the conversation.
But Taesu paid him no mind and continued with a blunt remark.